Thomas kiddier



(No Model.)

'I'., J. & J. W. KIDDIER. TRAVERSE WARP KNITTING MACHINE.

No. 462,878. Patented Nov. 10,1891.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS KIDDIER, JAMES KIDDIER, AND JOHN XVILLIAH KIDDIER, OF

NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND.

TRAVERSE-WARP KNITTING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 462,878, dated November10, 1891.

Application filed $eptember 30, 1890. Serial No. 366,630. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that we, THOMAS KIDDIER, JAMESKIDDIER, and JOHN WILLIAMKIDDIER, machinists, subjects of the Queen of Great Britain, allresiding at Bell Street, Arkwright- Street, in the town and county ofNottingham, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Traversearp Knitting- Maehines Used for Knitting \Varp Fabrics, ofwhich the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to knitting-machines known as warp-knittingmachines, more especially known as traverse warp machines. In this classof machines as heretofore constructed as each course is worked thewarp-threads are first unwound from the bobbin sufficiently to allow theneedles and other instruments to act upon them freely, and then thegreater part of what has been unwound is wound up again to close thework and prevent the threads from falling slack. Heretofore this windingand unwinding has been constantly going on through a considerable range,and the necessity for allowing time for this to take place Withoutviolence has materially limited the speed of the machine and the fabricproduced has been hard and tighter than desirable. According to ourinvention we do not do away with this action entirely, as it is needfulto give the proper tension to the work; but we desire yery greatly tolimit this to-and-fro winding and unwinding of the bobbins. We cause thethreads to pass from the bobbins on the several traverse-carriagesbeneath tension rollers or bars, which are of such weight as to beraised by the threads which pass beneath them. On the frames of thetraverse-carriages we form arms or brackets which are provided withslots and act as supports for the tension rollers or bars, allowing themto be suddenly raised as the threads are drawn on the needles and thento remain temporarily suspended on the threads for the purpose of takingup the looseness of the threads. In this way the irregular impulsesgiven to the threads are compensated by the tension roller or bar,instead of oceasioning sudden intermittentdrawing cit of the threadsfrom the bobbins. This enables us to run the traverse-warp machine at amuch greater speed than heretofore attained with the ease and smoothnessof motion required, and at the same time enables us to produce a muchslackenknitted warp fabric.

In order that our said invention may be fully understood and readilycarried into effeet, We will proceed to describe the drawings hereuntoannexed.

Figure l is an elevation, and Fig. 2 is a plan, of several of thetraverse-carriages.

The traverse-carriages are all precisely similar the one to the other;but for greater clearness and to avoid repetition the details are notrepeated in every case. Each traversecarriage consists of a base a,mounted on three caster-wheels Z) l) b, and it is jointed to the nextcarriage on either side at a a. The carriages thus constitute an endlesschain, which while the machine'is at work travels round and round,always over the same course. On each base a there are standards a a andthe bobbin X on which the threads are wound is carried in suitablebearings on the top of the standards. Arms ar a project horizontallyfrom the standards, and at the ends of the arms are vertical slots whichreceive the axis of a tension device or roller 0. The tension device maybe a bar which does not rotate, as indicated on the left side of Fig. 2;but a roller is preferred. The threads (1, as they are drawn from thebobbins X, pass beneath the tension-roller c and thence upward to theneedles by which the fabric is produced. The weight of the roller 0represents nearly the tension which it is desirable to apply to thethreads. To prevent the bobbin from turning too freely it has a pulley efixed to it. A cord f is lapped two or three times around this pulley,and its ends are attached to two weights 9 and 71 \Vhen the bobbin turnsin consequence of the threads being drawn oil from it, the weight g israised and the lighter weight his lowered until the latter comes againstthe they yield still further by being drawn cit:

- sion device or the weight.

the bobbin while the cord slips upon the pulley and without further riseeither of the'ten- /V hen the pull on the threads is relaxed, a portionof the threads is wound back again upon the bobbin. It will be observedthat each carriage carries a bobbin and that there is a tension rolleror bar for each bobbin. All the threads on which each tension-rollerbears are unwound from the same bobbin. Each carriage carrying a bobbinis provided with devices for causing a winding to and fro of thethreads.

hat we claim is- 1. In a traverse-warp knitting-machine, the combinationof a series of carriages, a bobbin and tension device on each carriage,and means for winding the threads to and fro on the bobbins.

2. The combination of a series of carriages connected together to form achain, a bobbin mounted in each carriage, a series of tension,- rollers,one for each bobbin, and means for winding the threads to and fro on thebobbins, substantially as set forth.

3. In a traverse-warp knitting-.n achine, the

combination of a series of carriages connected together to form a chainand each adapted to carry a bobbin, a bobbin adapted to'have threadwound upon it on each carriage, a pulley on the axis of the bobbin, acord wound upon the pulley, two weights, one heavier than the other,attached to the ends of the cord, and a tension device which bears onthe threads unwound from the bobbin, the whole so arranged that when thethreads are pulled they first yield while raising the tension device,then they further yield under a higher tension to close the work whileraising the heavier weight g, and, finally, they yield still further bybeing drawn oi the bobbin while the cord slips upon the pulley andwithout further rise either of the tension device or the weight, andalso the whole so arranged that when-the-pull on the threads is relaxeda portion of the threads is wound ack aga n upon {the bobb n- TI-IOMASKIDDIE'R. JAMES KIDDIER. JOHN WILLIAM 'KIDDIER. Witnesses;

MARK H A. A. DICKINSON.

